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Danna’s Bar-B-Que and Burger Shop, Branson

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Danna’s Bar-B-Que and Burger shop is situated in a charming building that serves exactly what the sign says — BBQ and burgers
Everything at Danna’s is fresh.  Larger cuts of beef and pork are smoked for 12-14 hours over local hickory wood; smaller cuts of meat and ribs are smoked twice a day for 4 hours.  The result is food that tastes terrific!
Burgers and a variety of sandwiches are available, but most people seemed to be enjoying the plates of BBQ. Plate meals are served with Memphis rolls, delicious cole slaw and the tastiest baked beans I’ve ever had.
Missouri and its neighboring states are known for fine BBQ, and Danna’s won’t disappoint.
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A visit to the Buffalo Bill Cultural Center, Oakley, Kansas

05 Buffalo Bill Cultural Center, Oakley (14)

It’s not every day you get to visit a small town that gave birth to a legend.  But Oakley, in western Kansas, was where the legend of Buffalo Bill began.  The legend was to grow from that of a skilled scout and hunter to that of the world’s first great showmen, owner and star of Wild West Show which toured in America and Europe more than a century.
Most legends have humble beginnings, as does Buffalo Bill.  William F Cody was working as a hunter in 1868, killing buffalo to feed men constructing the Kansas Pacific Railroad.  Even then he was recognized as a skilled hunter and was challenged by another to see who kill more bison.  This contest lasted 8 …

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Central USA / Kansas / North America

“Pic of the Week”, June 26, 2020: Van Gogh Easel, Goodland, Kansas

00 Van Gogh Easel, Goodland (6)

It’s not every day you get to see an enormous Van Gogh painting sitting on an easel in a small prairie town.  But that’s what we encountered recently when traveling through Kansas.
Goodland, in western Kansas, is said to have the World’s Largest Easel.  It’s 80 feet tall and holds a 32 x 24-foot representation of one of Van Gogh’s “Sunflower” paintings.  The painting was constructed using 24 sheets of plywood surrounded by fiberglass mattes and layered with an industrial gel coat.  The paint used was industrial acrylic urethane enamel, known for it’s hardiness in extreme weather conditions.  The easel is built of steel, weighing more than 40,000 pounds. The supports are sunk 35 feet into the ground. 
Goodland’s painting is a …

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“Pic of the Week”, June 19, 2020: American Bison, Keystone Gallery

02 Keystone Museum, Kansas (9)

We stopped by the Keystone Gallery after visiting Monument Rocks, south of Oakley, Kansas. Unfortunately the Gallery was not yet open for the season. Still, our stop turned out to interesting.
Immediately adjoining the Gallery was a large pasture wherein we spotted this bison. He was surprisingly near and, as we had a barb-wire fence between us, we hopped out of our car to try to snap some close-up photos — the closest I’ve ever been to a bison (a.k.a. buffalo).
At first we thought this bison was alone, but soon it became apparent that he was part of a small herd as others started drifting over a rise in the pasture.  A small reminder of a time when thousands of bison …

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Monument Rocks, Kansas

24 Monument Rocks, Kansas (70)

I had not heard of Monument Rocks before staying at a hotel in Kansas during a recent road trip.  Our hotel room displayed photos of some beautiful rock formations and on doing a little research, we realized they were not far off our route and definitely worth trying to see.
For big city folks, driving to Monument Rocks might seem like driving to the middle of nowhere, but persist in your journey as the trip is worthwhile.  The road to Monument Rocks is mostly well paved, although the final 6 miles is a gravel road that during heavy rains might get flooded and be difficult to navigate without all-wheel or four wheel drive. When we visited the weather and road were …

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